


Ice is Melted Back to Life

by wookiekisses



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, FIx It, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I fell into the trap of shipping again, M/M, obikin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-10 03:50:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,913
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5569897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wookiekisses/pseuds/wookiekisses
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anakin was treading a dangerous line, tiptoeing towards the Dark Side without a light to guide him. Obi-Wan knew that anything could shove him over the edge. He was fully aware that something was happening between his former Padawan and the Senator, but he didn't know what to do until he had a nightmarish vision that left his head reeling. A young woman with Anakin's eyes begging for help, a young man holding Anakin's old lightsaber, a menacing figure in black, a lava flooded planet, that was the future unless Obi-Wan did something.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dreams

Anakin was coiled like a spring, chaotic energy flowing around him like a swarm of mosquitoes, and Obi-Wan sighed heavily.

“Anakin, I can tell you’re up to something,” he said, arching a brow at his former Padawan. Anakin returned the eyebrow, much to Obi-Wan’s chagrin, and then rolled his eyes.

“I’m not ‘up to’ anything. Is it wrong of me to be in a good mood for once?” Anakin retorted. Obi-Wan let his eyes close for a moment, knowing full well why Anakin’s mood had so vastly improved overnight. Senator Amidala had arrived back on Coruscant that morning and he had no doubt that Anakin was anxious to see her.

“Only if you let your emotions, positive or otherwise, control your actions,” Obi-Wan replied, ever the Master. Anakin scowled at him, still the same petulant child he and Qui-Gon had picked up on Tatooine all those years ago.

“I don’t need another lecture.”

“And I wasn’t giving you one,” Obi-Wan sighed. “I was simply reminding you.”

“Do you think I need reminding?” Anakin’s voice was sharp and there was something cold in his usually gentle eyes. The expression made Obi-Wan’s stomach turn and he shrugged.

“I can feel the energy rolling off of you Anakin.”

Anakin shrank away at this and the sensation of a durasteel door slamming shut between them resonated through the Force. It was disturbing, how quickly Anakin was to shield himself, to block even the bond that had formed between them when they were Padawan and Master, but Obi-Wan knew that he could say very little without Anakin pushing him away further.

“My apologies. I should go…meditate. I shall see you later Master,” Anakin said coolly, and with that he was gliding down the hall. The only way Obi-Wan knew he was going to see Padme was the slight bounce in his step, imperceptible to anyone who hadn’t spent most of their life watching him.

“Anakin, wait-“ Obi-Wan started, reaching out with a hand since he couldn’t with their bond.

“Later,” Anakin snapped. Obi-Wan’s hand fell to his side and he shook his head before taking off towards the Room of a Thousand Fountains.

\-------

“Troubled, you are.”

Obi-Wan’s eyes cracked open at the voice and he slowly withdrew himself from his meditative trance. It appeared that even fully immersing himself in the Force could not ease the anxiety from his mind.

“Yes. It’s Anakin,” Obi-Wan sighed, letting his gaze fall to the pool of gently flowing water beside him. He looked tired, more tired than he ever remembered being, and the crease between his eyebrows was starting to become a permanent fixture.

“Mmm, and where is young Skywalker?” Yoda questioned, settling down in front of Obi-Wan and laying his cane across his lap.

“I’m not sure.”

“Lying, you are. With Senator Amidala he is.”

Obi-Wan grimaced. He was a bigger fool than he thought before if he believed for even an instant that he could lie to Yoda. The Grandmaster had lived for centuries more than Obi-Wan and was more in tune with the Force than any other living being. Obi-Wan was a mere Youngling when compared to the small figure across from him.

“You knew?” he asked, returning his gaze to Yoda with no small amount of shame. He felt he had failed as a Master with his former Padawan slipping into the snares of affection and attachment.

“Of course I knew,” Yoda replied, “but upset you do not have to be. Not your fault, Anakin’s transgressions are.”

Obi-Wan snorted softly at this and scraped a hand over his coppery beard.

“Who else is to blame other than me? I was the one who was supposed to teach him to avoid the very things he is indulging in regularly.”

Yoda stared at him until Obi-Wan felt the desire to squirm, and then shook his head.

“Teach him you did, but learn he did not. An energetic and emotional boy, Anakin has always been…but fear for him, I do,” Yoda said. Obi-Wan’s guilt failed to abate and he hung his head.

“I am afraid for him too, but I don’t know what to do,” he admitted, glancing up at the ancient man in front of him.

“Speak to him, you must…but not as a Master, no. A friend Anakin needs. Open to emotion you must become,” Yoda instructed. Obi-Wan’s brows furrowed and he smoothed his hands over the fabric of his trousers.

“But I thought that we were supposed to stay away from emotion.”

Yoda suddenly reached out and poked him in the forehead with his cane. It was a gentle and unexpected touch, just the thing Obi-Wan had needed, and entirely within the realm of Yoda’s odd yet wise personality.

“No. Human, you are, and emotions you must have. Let them flow into the Force a good Jedi will, but feel them before he throws them away he should. Sometimes you can learn from these things. When overwhelming it becomes, to the Dark side fear may lead, but when acknowledged and let go, save your life it can. Connected to his emotions, Anakin is. Perhaps he needs another person with whom to feel, and the only one Padme is right now.”

Obi-Wan nodded and returned his gaze to the water to mull over what Yoda had said, but by the time he looked up the other man was gone. He let out a slow breath and let himself fall into another trance, clinging to the Force almost desperately as he tried to sort out what to do with his unfortunately misguided friend.

\-------

_“Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.”_

_The girl was beautiful, no doubt, and she possessed the same fire Anakin had once had in his eyes even in the hologram. Her hair was dark and thick, a gift from Padme no doubt, and her face was just as delicate as the Senator’s. But something was wrong, terribly wrong; even without the information from the R2 unit Obi-Wan could sense it. He looked up at the young man standing in his poor excuse for a home and felt stricken by memories. The sandy hair, strong jaw, impressive height, and bright eyes were entirely Anakin. **This must be Luke Skywalker** he thought. _

_The scene changed. The girl was nowhere to be seen, nor was Luke. Instead, Obi-Wan heard a ghastly breath rattle through the air and turned slowly on his heel. Standing before him was a figure in black. He activated his lightsaber, and the figure did the same. The weapon cast an angry red glare across his shiny mask and Obi-Wan resisted the urge to shudder. **Anakin, what has happened to you?**_

_There was fire, lava, ash everywhere. The heat was making his hair stick to his head and was making his vision swim, but Anakin was there. This wasn’t the Anakin he knew though. This Anakin was clad entirely in black and his eyes glowed with an ethereal rage that gave away far more than his outfit did. He was slipping, drifting down the unsteady terrain towards a river of lava. He was missing most of his limbs, and he was screaming in pain and rage. Obi-Wan felt tears pool and he wanted to run, to never witness the monster his Padawan had become, but it was too late._

_“I HATE YOU,” Anakin screamed, trying to claw his way up towards Obi-Wan._

_“You were my brother Anakin. I loved you,” Obi-Wan replied, voice steady despite the tears now streaming down his face to mix with the sweat and ash left from the battle. The lava licked its way up Anakin’s leg, setting his clothes alight, and Obi-Wan felt sick. In that moment he almost ran to Anakin, almost pulled him from the flames that threatened to swallow him, but he couldn’t. This wasn’t Anakin anymore, this was a Sith, and he had no place left in this world. Obi-Wan turned and ran from the burning man he had once called a friend._

\-------

“Master Kenobi! Master Kenobi!”

Someone was shaking him and Obi-Wan flew into wakefulness with a gasp, eyes wide and stinging. A Twi’lek girl was crouched in front of him, her lekku swaying fearfully. Obi-Wan sat up and immediately turned to empty the contents of his stomach onto the grass. Wincing, he wiped his mouth the with back of his hand and let out a shaky breath.

“Are you alright Master Kenobi?” the girl asked. Obi-Wan looked at her and smiled as best he could.

“I am fine, thank you young one. Just a nightmare,” he lied. The girl, however, was far less perceptive than Yoda and accepted his lie with a nod. “I must find Anakin,” he said. His voice was hoarse and he immediately knew he had been screaming in his sleep. His neck and ears burned as he rushed from the gardens, many pairs of eyes following him


	2. Discussions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "That could have gone better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so. the timelines might get a bit scrambled here in reference to The Clone Wars and Episode III, aka Ahsoka's presence at the same time as Palpatine's. Apologies, but I'm just gonna go with Canon Divergence because authorial freedom...? I guess?

Anakin walked down the hall and reveled in the silence of the Temple at night. The air was humming with a muted energy, the Force at work even when nobody else was, and there was something special about being one of the only ones awake. Yellow light from the lamps outside slatted in through the windows, casting a dim yet warm glow over the place, and it seemed to reflect the warmth that had settled in his chest. In a time when Anakin was sent from battle to battle, barely having time to pause and breathe let alone enjoy life, Padme was certainly an oasis. His stomach fluttered a bit as he thought of his wife, who was no doubt well on her way to sleep by now, but he suppressed the feeling in time to punch in the pass-code to the quarters that he shared with Ahsoka. 

His Padawan, he believed, was also asleep, but when the door opened with a gentle hiss he found that there was someone slumped in one of the armchairs in the sitting room. 

"Oh Snips," he murmured fondly, walking forward to wake the young Togruta. He froze when he realized that the figure in the chair was much larger than his Padawan. The only thing orange about this person was their hair and beard and Anakin almost stumbled backward in surprise. 

"Master, what are you doing here?" he hissed, not wishing to wake Ahsoka. Obi-Wan's eyes snapped open and his posture immediately righted itself. He hadn't been asleep, but he must have been meditating. Obi-Wan waved his hand and the lights came on, making Anakin wince at the sudden brightness. 

"There's no need to whisper Anakin; Ahsoka is sleeping in the spare room of my quarters."

Anakin's jaw clenched. "And why is that?"

"We need to talk and I knew that had I sought to hold any conversation in my own quarters you would slip away again. Ahsoka suggested waiting here until you returned, and I insisted that she stay in my quarters so that we could talk without fear of waking her," Obi-Wan explained, his voice as level as ever. The peace that Anakin had found in the arms of his wife vanished and was replaced by a simmering anger. 

"You sucked my Padawan into this too? She's supposed to respect me but how am I going to earn that respect if you're dragging her into some foolish-"

"Enough Anakin!" Obi-Wan barked, and as usual Anakin quieted himself. "Ahsoka does not know why I am here, only that I am concerned about you and wished to check in on you. I'm not here as your Master, I'm here as your friend."

That took Anakin by surprise and he blinked a few times.  _Friend?_ "We're friends?"

"I would certainly hope so, considering all we've been through," Obi-Wan replied, and he actually looked a bit put out by Anakin's question. But wasn't it against Obi-Wan's precious Code not to have friends? Friendship was just another form of attachment. 

"Doesn't that violate the code?" Anakin asked, folding his arms across his chest. He knew he sounded like a snotty Youngling, but he was tired, frustrated, and a bit nervous about Obi-Wan's sudden appearance. His former Master sighed at the question and scraped a hand across his jaw, the rasp of his beard against his palm breaking the quiet between them. 

"Do you remember your Initiate Trials?" 

"Of course I do." The question was an odd one, but Anakin was willing to wait for Obi-Wan to explain why he was here. He deserved as much considering the attitude that Anakin had given him earlier that day. 

"I must admit that I feel the version we present to the Younglings then is far more accurate to what we as Jedi do. 'Emotion, yet peace.' Master Yoda recently said to me that it is impossible as a human, and I'm assuming this stretches to all sentient species, not to feel emotion. However, a good Jedi will feel these things and then allow them to flow into the Force, freeing himself from the restraints that the emotions carry."

"Is this turning into another lecture?" Anakin sighed. 

"No," Obi-Wan groaned, pushing his hands through his hair. "I'm trying to explain myself to you before this talk. Just. Patience,  _please_." 

Anakin nodded and motioned for him to continue. 

"I strive to do this on a regular basis, but there is no such thing as a perfect Jedi Anakin. I will not deny that I have attachments: to you, to Ahsoka, to Rex. But I try not to let that affection get in the way of proper judgement. I must always do what is best for the majority, even if it means risking the loss of someone that I care deeply for. I'm not a machine Anakin. I love and hurt and even fear like everyone else. I just choose not to let it control me," Obi-Wan continued. He looked a bit lost, exhausted and teetering on the edge of something that Anakin wasn't overly familiar with. Anakin finally stepped away from the door then and sank onto the sofa so that he was near Obi-Wan. His hands smoothed over his legs, clenching around his knees, and he furrowed his brow. 

"I'm surprised by you Master, but I cannot say that this is an unwelcome revelation," Anakin finally said, shooting Obi-Wan a small smile which the man tried valiantly to return. "But I don't think this is what you came here to discuss either." 

"No," Obi-Wan said, his shoulders slumping. Conflict was written in his steely eyes, unnerving and overly real to Anakin. "I know about you and the Senator."

Anakin stood immediately, almost flipping the small table in front of him in his haste to stand. "I-" he felt himself slipping into a panic, "I don't know what you're talking about." 

"With a reaction like that I highly doubt that's the truth Anakin. Please sit down, I'm not angry with you." 

Anakin sank back into his seat, head foggy and thoughts racing far too quickly for him to sort them out. "How?" was his weak reply. 

"It wasn't all that hard to figure out. I know you all too well Anakin, I've known you since you were a boy. You light up whenever she's around, and you have a bad habit of disappearing whenever she happens to be on the same planet as yourself," Obi-Wan explained, smiling a bit sadly. 

"Are you going to tell the Council?" Anakin croaked. 

"No, but that's not to say that Master Yoda doesn't already know. He expressed some concern over it today in the gardens." 

Anakin's head cleared slightly, but his panic did not fade in the least. "You were in the gardens? You never go there." 

\-------

Obi-Wan almost scowled at his Padawan. He had just told him that Yoda knew about his affair with the Senator and he was worrying about Obi-Wan having been in the gardens? He took a slow breath. He had to remain calm yet allow Anakin to see that he did have feelings. He needed to get through to the young man, express his concern without alienating his former Padawan, offer help without seeming like an overbearing Master unwilling to give up his position after cutting the braid. 

"I know," he breathed, sinking back into his chair. "In all honesty, I went there because that's where Qui-Gon would go whenever he was troubled. There are many times I wish he were still alive so that I could seek his guidance...I thought perhaps i would find it there." 

He was surprised by the dampness lurking at the edges of his eyes, and even more-so by the astonished look on Anakin's face. They had never really spoken about Qui-Gon that much; it was an understandably sore subject for Obi-Wan and Anakin didn't enjoy seeing his Master hurting. 

"And you found Yoda," Anakin murmured, running his hand across his face. 

"Yoda found me actually, but yes," Obi-Wan said. "We are both...afraid for you Anakin." 

"What? Why?" Anakin snapped, jerking his head back to glare at Obi-Wan almost menacingly. "Are you going to throw me out of the Order?" 

"No, but we are worried about the possible repercussions of such an intense attachment." 

"You're afraid I'll go to the Dark Side," Anakin said. His voice had lost all emotion and he turned away once more to gaze out the window at the planet outside. 

"Yes," Obi-Wan breathed, hanging his head. "I have no desire to lose you Anakin, especially not like that. I know that you value your relationship with the Senator but your every action hinges so much on your emotions that I feel it is an understandable fear." 

"And fear is not a path to the Dark Side?" Anakin replied, waspish and indignant. Obi-Wan hid a small smile behind his hand. The Light was still so present in his former Padawan, and his fiery spirit seemed to fuel its brightness when called into question. 

"It is, but I am not letting it control me. If I were, I would have locked you away in your old room by now." The admission caught Anakin's attention and even managed to draw a small laugh from the brooding man. 

"Then why haven't you?" 

"Because I know that you are smart, even if you like to act like you aren't. I also know that you take my advice into account despite your constant griping about my lectures," Obi-Wan answered. Anakin sighed and tilted his head to make eye contact with his Master. 

"And what is your advice on this matter Master?"

Obi-Wan pursed his lips. "To think before you act, most definitely, but also...to be unafraid to come to me for help should you need it. You are my Padawan, but more importantly you are my friend. I do not want you to think that you must act alone." 

Anakin stared at him for a long while, and Obi-Wan was unable to suss out what he was feeling. His shields were still firmly in place and his expression was unreadable. With a sigh, Obi-Wan stood. 

"I will leave you to your thoughts now. Ahsoka will be here in the morning in time for her lessons," he said, and with that he left Anakin's quarters feeling slightly lighter than he had before their talk. 


	3. Distractions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "How can I trust him?"  
> "How can you not?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two for the price of one tonight I guess? A bit of a filler, but I feel like it's important for Anakin's development. Also, thanks for all the comments and kudos guys <3

"Trouble sleeping?" 

Anakin grunted and looked up at his Padawan, who was examining him over her breakfast. He shrugged and picked up his caf, hoping it would wake him up a bit. 

"You could say that." 

"Did you and Obi-Wan fight?" Ahsoka asked. Anakin raised an eyebrow at her. 

"No. We just...talked," he replied. 

"About what?"

"That's none of your concern."

"He's worried about you." 

"I am well aware of that Ahsoka."

"I'm worried too."

That gave Anakin pause. He drummed the fingers of his mechanical hand on the table,  _click click click_ , and let his eyes wander her face, reading her emotions in the burnt orange of her skin, the white lines that so wonderfully framed her face, and the gentle, subtle sway of her lekku. Hm. How had he failed to notice it before? 

_Because you were too busy obsessing over Padme_ a voice in his head chides. It sounds suspiciously like Obi-Wan. 

"You have no reason to worry Snips. Which one of us is the Master here, eh?" he asked, plucking at the hot cereal in his bowl with a spoon. Ahsoka grinned and took a drink of her tea. 

"I know, I know, but that doesn't mean I can't worry about you all the same," Ahsoka replied. Anakin felt a rush of gratitude for having her assigned to him. She was a wonderful compliment to his personality; she had Obi-Wan's serenity and Anakin's ferocity. The balance was impressive, even if she struggled to maintain it from time to time. 

"There's nothing for you to worry about, I promise. Now finish your breakfast before you're late for your history lessons." 

\-------

For once in his life, Anakin felt that he needed to meditate. He wandered the halls of the Temple, rejecting meditation rooms left and right until he found himself standing at the door to the Room of a Thousand Fountains.  _Go figure_ he thought, and with that he pushed open the door. 

The balmy air smoothed over him like a lover's caress and he instantly felt a bit calmer. The Living Force was abuzz in this room, filled from floor to ceiling with plants from all over the galaxy. The trickle of streams and the whispering roar of distant waterfalls was almost like a lullaby, and Anakin let his feet carry him where they wanted to go. He wound his way through the garden until he found a small, secluded spot hidden behind a crescent of flowering bushes. He sank to the ground and closed his eyes, reaching for the Force. Surprisingly enough, the serenity he so often struggled to find hit him almost instantly. In that moment he understood why Obi-Wan had so fervently insisted on him meditating for hours on end. 

"Odd, it is, to find Master and Padawan in the same place not to far after one another," a voice murmured, and Anakin's eyes snapped open. 

"Master Yoda," he said in greeting, trying to suppress the wave of annoyance at having his meditation interrupted.  _Kriff, I really am starting to sound like Obi-Wan_. 

"Troubled you are. Sense it in the Force, I can," Yoda replied, not bothering to return the greeting. Even sitting, Anakin was taller than him, but Anakin knew the power that the small and slightly shriveled frame held, the mind between the long ears. Anakin sighed. 

"Yes, but aren't we all in times like these?" Anakin asked, tilting his head to the side. Yoda hummed in agreement. 

"Indeed. These are dark times young Skywalker, and ever closer does the darkness get."

"What do you mean?" Anakin asked. 

"Premonitions, I have had, visions from the Force. Revelations of what is to come...what may come if some paths are taken," Yoda said. A chill ran down Anakin's spine. 

"What sort of visions?" he pressed. Yoda shook his head. 

"For me, that knowledge is. Only advice I come to give. Listen to your Master, you should. He too knows of what may come, so attuned to the Force he is. Guide you astray, he will not. The same I cannot say about others, mmm. No, learn not to be so trusting you should," Yoda muttered, and with that he started hobbling off towards the path. 

"Master Yoda, wait," Anakin called out. The man stopped and turned to look Anakin in the eye. "Obi-Wan has spoken to me about...some things that you discussed with him yesterday. I won't lie to you, and I won't apologize, but...I do want you to know that I would never betray you. The Order is my home."

Yoda frowned at this. "Betrayed us you already have with your disobedience of the Code. A significant infraction this is, and not one that can be undone. But not so grievous that it need be addressed by the Council. Inherently Dark, love is not, but dangerous when it becomes obsession. Find balance, you must, and sacrifices you will have to make." With that, the man started to walk away once more and Anakin let him, feeling cold with shame and even more confused than he had before he began meditating. 

**_Go to your Master, Anakin. He will guide you as he always has._ **

The voice was like a whisper, a mere tremble in the Force, but Anakin knew in his gut that it was Qui-Gon's voice. He rose to his feet and brushed his trousers off. Like it or not, Obi-Wan was his only friend at the moment. 


	4. Darth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There are only ever two Sith Lords at once Anakin. The Master and the Apprentice. We must assume that Darth Sidious is simply waiting for the right one to come along."   
> "But isn't Dooku Sidious' Apprentice?"  
> "Indeed he is, but do you really think that Sidious wouldn't dispose of him in an instant should someone stronger come along?"

_Chirp chirp chirp._

Obi-Wan frowned and tried to block out the noise, wishing only to resume his work. The young Consular sitting at the desk nearest him shot him a glare and he sighed heavily before pulling out his comlink. He walked over to the Consular and deposited several tomes onto the desk, striding purposefully out of the library. He could already feel a headache beginning to form when he turned the device on. 

"Kenobi," he said, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice. He could have ignored the call completely, turned the device off like he should have before he even entered the library, but something in his gut had told him not to. Perhaps it was the apprehension surrounding Anakin's...situation. Whatever the reason, he wasn't going to question it. 

"Master. I went to your quarters to speak to you but you weren't there, and nobody has seen you since your lecture on Soresu this morning." Anakin's voice rang out in the hallway, and Obi-Wan glanced back to see if the door to the library had shut completely. He urged it along with a little push from the Force and began walking back towards his quarters. 

"I was in the library working on some research. Is everything alright?"

"As alright as they can be. I'd like to speak with you when you have the time though," Anakin replied. 

"I'm on my way back now," Obi-Wan said, and his annoyance at the interruption faded, seeping into the Force and aided along by his concern for his former Padawan. 

\-------

Anakin was pacing back and forth in front of Obi-Wan's door by the time the older Jedi returned, and Obi-Wan quirked a brow at this. 

"You know that I haven't changed the codes since you moved into your own quarters, don't you?" he asked, punching in the code and letting the door slide open with a soft hiss. Anakin blinked in momentary surprise at this, following Obi-Wan into his quarters silently. 

The silence itself was unsettling, and Obi-Wan stared at Anakin for several minutes before speaking again. 

"What is bothering you?" he asked. Anakin sank down into a chair and rubbed a hand over his face, looking utterly defeated. 

"I spoke with Master Yoda earlier," Anakin murmured, voice muffled by his gloved hand. 

"Ah. And what came of that conversation?" Obi-Wan asked, settling into his own chair with much more ease than Anakin had. 

"He told me that he's had...visions. Force visions. And that you have as well."

Ah. Well that complicated things a bit. Obi-Wan couldn't help but feel a flash of annoyance toward the Grandmaster. He hadn't planned on telling Anakin about his rather disturbing visions unless he was forced to. And his hand was being forced well before it should have been. 

"I have, yes," was Obi-Wan's hesitant reply. Anakin sat up a bit straighter and his hand dropped to the arm of the chair. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" he almost hissed. Obi-Wan resisted the urge to flinch as Anakin's mechanical hand clenched around the chair arm so tightly that the metal beneath the padding started to crumple. 

"I was afraid that the information would only feed into your fear." 

He was immediately caught in a stand-off, his former Padawan locking eyes with him. Something fizzled between them, a potent mix of emotions that lashed out against Obi-Wan's mental shields and forced his stomach to turn. 

"If it is my future, I have a right to know," Anakin finally said. 

"Visions like this are not guarantees as much as they are warnings Anakin," Obi-Wan replied. Anakin's face twisted and Obi-Wan bit back another sigh. Of course he sounded just like Yoda. 

"Tell me what you saw," Anakin demanded. 

"No." 

"If you don't tell me, how can I trust you? You say you are my friend and that you want to help me, and yet you are hiding secrets and refusing to give me information that might very well spare me the apparently horrendous future that both you and Yoda saw!" Anakin almost shouted. Obi-Wan made a gesture at him to lower his voice and then stood. 

"Sometimes not knowing is better," he murmured, crossing over to a small shelf on the wall to pluck a few shriveled leaves off of a plant that he kept there. "I saw...a young man and woman. I don't know their names, but I know that they were somehow your children."

"Children? How could I have children?"

"I don't know Anakin. How does one produce offspring? Oh, that's right, he sleeps with a member of the opposite or hermaphroditic sex of a compatible species. Hm, hard to imagine how you would produce children." The reply was far more scathing than Obi-Wan would have liked, and he realized with a start that Anakin's own anger was seeping in through their Bond. His mental shields were always weaker when it came to Anakin, and now he was paying the price. Anakin stood up and took an almost threatening step towards Obi-Wan.

"Your sarcasm is not appreciated, nor is it helping matters  _Master_ ," Anakin growled, voice low. "So why don't you just tell me everything that you saw in that vision so that we can figure this out and prevent it from happening?" 

"My apologies. I...don't know what came over me," Obi-Wan shakily replied, desperately trying to build up defenses against Anakin's potent emotions. "But yes. They were your children. The girl was frightened, in trouble of some kind, and the boy was...training to be a Jedi. I think that I was in hiding." 

"So I died then. There's no way I would leave my own children to fend for themselves."

"Yes and no."

"What do you mean, 'yes and no'? You can't be alive and dead at the same time," Anakin said. 

"The Anakin Skywalker you are today, the Anakin that I have come to know and care for despite a thousand reasons not to including the Code, was dead. He was replaced by a Sith Lord," Obi-Wan spat the last two words out like a curse, shuddering as the echoes of that Sith's rattling breaths surged through his mind. "And even then he was barely even human anymore. Your...body had been destroyed almost completely." 

"How?" Anakin asked, horror evident. His shoulders were stiff, eyes wide, and his hands were clenching and unclenching rapidly. Obi-Wan hung his head. 

"We were...fighting. On a volcanic planet. I had apparently bested you. You only had an arm left, and...and you started sliding back towards the lava," he whispered, feeling tears well up unwelcome in his eyes. 

"Why didn't you save me?" Anakin croaked. 

"Because you weren't you anymore Anakin. You started screaming at me, you told me that y-you hated me, and then you just c-caught on fire a-and there wasn't anything I could do. There was nothing left of you, your soul, what makes you you, left. Only a body that bore a horrifying resemblance to you. So I left you to die and I ran." By the time Obi-Wan was finished explaining the nightmarish vision to Anakin, he had come undone. A sob tore its way out of his chest and the tears finally spilled over, burning hot streaks down his face and soaking into his beard. He felt like a child, less than that even, crying over this, but the vision had been too much. Reliving it had been too much. He wrapped his arms around himself and tried to get his emotions under control, but he was weak, Anakin's shock and dismay flooding him and fueling the tumultuous storm that had been brewing in his mind ever since the vision had come to him. When he felt Anakin's hand settle between his shoulders, warm, alive, thumb rubbing comforting circles against his skin, Obi-Wan sank to the ground and let the pain almost consume him. 

"It wasn't real Master...it wasn't real. I'm still here, I'm still  _me._ Obi-Wan, please," Anakin whispered, kneeling down beside him and hesitating for a brief second before wrapping Obi-Wan in a tight hug. Obi-Wan hadn't been comforted this since Qui-Gon had woken him from a nightmare, the last nightmare Qui-Gon would ever wake him from before he grew too old and was told to let his fear seep into the Force and vanish. He sank into the touch, almost starved for it, and buried his face in the crook of Anakin's neck. His former Padawan smelled of the starchy soap they all used to clean their robes, of engine grease and cleaning fluid, of metal and the desert, and it wasn't long before Obi-Wan's breakdown ended. 

He immediately tried to jerk out of Anakin's grip, but Anakin only held on more tightly and shifted them so that they were sitting, Obi-Wan between his legs with his back to Anakin's chest. It was an inverted reflection of their relationship; Anakin was the one in control of his emotions for once, Anakin was the source of comfort, and Obi-Wan was almost lost to the trappings of his mind and the havoc that the Force had wreaked upon it. Obi-Wan was embarrassed and angry that he had indulged for even a second such weakness, and he knew that he had just betrayed the Code in his own way by allowing his emotions to take such control of him. 

"I'm sorry," he croaked, and Anakin only shook his head. 

"It is I that should be apologizing," Anakin murmured, resting his chin atop Obi-Wan's head. The hold was intimate but not entirely uncomfortable, and Obi-Wan knew that such was the result of a friendship as long lasting as theirs had been so far. He also knew that if Anakin Skywalker ever died, ever became the monster that haunted the darkest corners of Obi-Wan's mind, that Obi-Wan Kenobi would also cease to exist. "I have done a lot of foolish things these past few years. I have allowed my emotions to control me, and I've become...obsessed with Padme. I cannot deny that I love her, nor will I ever regret our relationship, but I also cannot deny that sometimes I am also a slave to the fear of losing her. She's noticed how fiercely protective of her I've become, and while she isn't pushing me away I don't think she is entirely pleased either." 

"I doubt that anyone as strong willed as the Senator would appreciate an overbearing partner," Obi-Wan muttered. 

"Husband," Anakin sighed. Obi-Wan's head snapped back and he stared at Anakin in disbelief.

" _What?"_

"We may have gotten married on Naboo. Uh. A little while ago now. Not legally, but it was a religious ceremony and to be completely honest that's all we really needed, it was all Padme-"

"You are a bigger fool that I thought Anakin," Obi-Wan interrupted, but the abrasive comment was softened by Obi-Wan letting his head tip back again. The Master stared up at the ceiling, trying to reconvene with the Force, almost begging it to grant him some semblance of peace before their conversation continued. 

"You always do say that I am full of surprises," Anakin said almost darkly. "But that's neither here nor there. What is important is that I now know what my future could hold if I don't tread lightly. More than I already did anyway." 

"What do you mean?" Obi-Wan questioned. Anakin stiffened and finally relinquished his hold on Obi-Wan, who turned and readjusted himself so he was sitting facing Anakin. 

"I...may have had a vision as well." 

"Of?" Obi-Wan wanted to throttle his former Padawan, but instead he tightly grasped his knees and tried to take slow, steady breaths. Part of him was itching to grab his saber and fight Anakin until both of them were weak with exhaustion. 

"Her dying. Calling out to me, begging me to save her...I think Padme will die during childbirth if she gets pregnant. I...I can't lose her Obi-Wan, not like that," he whispered.

"Anakin, if you become desperate you might lose her anyway," Obi-Wan warned. 

"Do you think it's the threat of losing her that pushes me to the Dark Side then?" Anakin asked. 

"I'm not sure. It is probably a great motivator, but you would also need the influence and aid of a Sith Lord...and I doubt that Darth Sidious will be visiting any time soon. We don't even know who he is," Obi-Wan replied. 

"So then I just stay away from Sidious and the problem is solved. No Sith Lords, no Dark Side, no...Darth me," Anakin said, grinning forcefully. Obi-Wan knew that the smile, along with the bravado, was fake. 

"There is also the problem of Count Dooku. He is an ever present force in our lives Anakin, and I have no doubt that we will run into him time and time again. It is not a guarantee that Sidious would be the one to turn you to the Dark Side."

Anakin ran his flesh hand through his hair. "Then we kill him. We'll have to anyway, and if we kill him then I doubt Sidious will come slithering out of hiding any time soon if we kill his Apprentice," Anakin replied. 

"There are only ever two Sith Lords at once Anakin. The Master and the Apprentice. We must assume that Darth Sidious is simply waiting for the right one to come along," Obi-Wan said. He knew it was a strange transition, but he also knew that it was a necessary conversation.  _You were the Chosen One. You were supposed to bring balance to the Force, not destroy it._ The words echoed through his mind much like the Sith Lord's breathing, and while he hadn't heard them in the vision he knew that they were all a part of it anyway. 

  
"But isn't Dooku Sidious' Apprentice?" Anakin asked. Obi-Wan let out a dark chuckle. 

  
"Indeed he is, but do you really think that Sidious wouldn't dispose of him in an instant should someone stronger come along?" he questioned. Anakin's face grew pale and he shook his head. 

"I'm not stronger than Dooku. I couldn't beat him. It would be madness for Sidious to get rid of him in order to take me on as an Apprentice," Anakin breathed, apparently grasping for straws. The pieces were all starting to fall into place for Obi-Wan and he felt the Force whispering to him, begging to drag him into another horrifying glimpse at a potential future, and for the first time in his life he rejected its offer. 

"There are many people that put little faith in the prophecy Anakin, but an even greater number do, even if you don't see it. You have unbelievable potential, and your own power has grown immensely even in the past few years. You have already taken on a Padawan who is flourishing under your guidance, and I see your influence over her daily. She took on Grievous by herself and survived. If that isn't a testament to your teaching-"

"Or her skill-"

"No Anakin. If she had been assigned to any other Master, I can honestly say that I do not think she would have lived. You have taught her the balance between intense emotionality and the serenity all Jedi must posses, even if you yourself fail to find it. Even without that balance you are powerful. Frighteningly so, if I am continuing this trend of honesty."

Anakin was speechless, and he stared down at his own hands. 

"I don't want to kill Padme. I don't want to disappoint you, or hurt Ahsoka, or do anything else that Sidious would ask of me. I don't want to become a monster," he almost moaned. This time, Obi-Wan was the one to reach out, and he gently clasped Anakin's hands in his own. Obi-Wan was the only person other than Padme to never flinch when they felt the metal beneath his glove, and for some reason that was incredibly important in this moment. 

"Then we will find a way to save you Anakin. I swear it. We're the duo for Force's sake; we haven't ever faced down an opponent we couldn't defeat, and we have the Force on our side. If we didn't, neither of us would be having these visions. It will all be alright," Obi-Wan murmured. Anakin smiled weakly at his Master and leaned forward, pulling him into a hug once more. Both men shifted onto their knees to alleviate the awkwardness of the position, but neither of them moved until Obi-Wan's joints popped and ached. 

"You're getting old Master," Anakin laughed. Obi-Wan glared at him and rose to his feet. 

"Quiet you. We've both still got a very long life ahead of us." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As far as I've gathered, there is a /lot/ of debate about the "Rule of Two", i.e. the belief that there can only ever be 2 Sith at once: a Master and an Apprentice. This comes up in Episode I when Windu and Yoda are speaking, and Yoda states that there are only ever 2 Sith, which Obi-Wan quotes almost directly in this chapter. Because of The Clone Wars cartoon, which falls under the category of T-canon (Television canon, one step below the movies themselves), many people wonder if this is not so much a concrete rule as it is a guideline since there appear to be more than 2 Sith.
> 
> Sidious->Dooku/Tyranus->Ventress
> 
> I have seen two arguments that I feel are the more logical stances to take on this. The first being that, since Asajj Ventress was not Darth Ventress, she was not considered a true Sith and therefore Sidious indulged Dooku and allowed him to have an Apprentice; he later ordered Dooku to dispose of her. He apparently had ambitions of taking Sidious down and becoming the Master, so he had apprentices to help him. But one at a time. 
> 
> The second being that, seeing as the Sith are the Sith and they do what they darn well please, Dooku took on an Apprentice instead of adhering to the Sith "Rule of Two". 
> 
> Obviously this is something that the canon itself jumbles up, especially since it is immediately reestablished in Episode II when Anakin beheads Dooku and becomes Sidious' Apprentice, but ya know. The Clone Wars was written after Episode I, so everyone's just confused. Some people wish to stick to the Rule of Two, but I'm sort of playing in my sandbox here. Iunno anymore, sometimes the Star Wars EU gets confusing.

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from "Emperor's New Clothes" by Panic! At the Disco. An excellent song, 10/10 would recommend. This is going to be a wild ride kiddies, so buckle up.


End file.
